Concealed carry’s big day

Concealed carry advocates say they have the facts on their side, as Wisconsin’s new law takes effect. State Senator Frank Lasee is convinced it will be a crime deterrent, saying that’s happened in other states. “There have been cases of a mall shooting, where someone was just shooting people randomly in a mall, and two concealed carry permit holders start return fire, held them down until the police came. It could have been a much greater disaster,” said Lasee. “Those are the sort of things that do happen in the real world, when citizens who are safe are able to protect themselves and protect others. It makes criminals nervous. It cuts down on crime.”

The new concealed carry law will lead to more tragedies and death. That prediction from Jeri Bonavia of WAVE, the Wisconsin Anti-Violence Effort. “In other states what we’ve seen is that their appears to be a link between loose carrying laws and firearm death rates,” says Bonavia. “We don’t want to see an increase in gun violence in the state of Wisconsin.”

A Janesville firearms dealer says customers are stocking up for the concealed carry law that starts today. Larry Addie says most customers are purchasing guns for a sense of security. “It’s a lot of middle-aged to older people,” says Larry Addie. “They’re concerned about home safety, because of all the action we’ve had in Janesville because of break ins and that, people are arming themselves.” Addie says the four-hour training requirement is a good idea, since he believes everyone should have training before the purchase of a handgun.